(Montreal) At a time when Hydro-Québec needs significant new sources of supply to decarbonize the economy, the association representing renewable energy producers ensures that the private sector, municipalities and indigenous communities are in good health. posture to meet demand.
There is no shortage of potential projects to respond to the state company’s calls for tenders, underlines the new president and CEO of the Association québécoise de production d’energie renewable (AQPER), Luis Calzado, in an interview. “The renewable energy sector, we are ready, we have already demonstrated it,” assures the man who took the reins of the association at the beginning of October.
He cites as an example the state company’s most recent call for tenders for 1,500 megawatts (MW). In total, 16 proposals were received, representing 3,400 MW.
While the new boss of Hydro-Québec, Michael Sabia, is working on his new strategy, AQPER would like the state-owned company to adopt a predictable supply schedule for the industry for the period between 2025 and 2030.
“Recurrence is not only to achieve our climate objectives, but it is also a question of work, of social acceptability with the communities which would receive these projects,” explains Mr. Calzado.
The industry’s spokesperson is in agreement with the strategy of Hydro-Québec and the government, until now, but it insists on the importance of having medium-term supply planning which includes a certain recurrence.
Hydro-Québec predicted that 100 terawatt hours (TWh) of new supplies would be needed to decarbonize the economy by 2050. The Minister of Energy, Pierre Fitzgibbon, has stated on more than one occasion that this target would be significantly higher high; the figure of 200 TWh has already been mentioned.
Hydro-Québec will likely give more details on its strategy on Thursday, while it will unveil its plan to decarbonize the economy by 2035.
A saturated network
While there is no shortage of proposals from renewable energy producers, connecting to the grid could represent a longer-term challenge.
At the end of 2022, Hydro-Québec had rearranged the criteria of its calls for tenders to prioritize projects that can connect most quickly to its network. “We wanted to avoid the private sector coming in with projects that made sense for them, but for us did not make sense as much at the social level as at the transport level,” Minister Fitzgibbon explained at the time.
The challenge of saturation of the electrical transportation network is an issue that is not unique to Quebec. The bill could be hefty for Western governments, mentioned the big boss of Boralex, Patrick Decostre, in February.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Boralex CEO Patrick Decostre
” There are limits [à la capacité de réseau], he explained during a conference call with financial analysts. Governments will have to invest a lot of money. When I say a lot of money, it’s probably billions, but it’s the only way to make the energy transition. »
Questioned on the subject, Mr. Calzado remains diplomatic and does not advance on the desired solutions to manage this issue. “The members are ready to collaborate with Hydro-Québec for everything related to the design that will be necessary for the addition of renewable energies in our province. »
Wind power: “more affordable source”
Quebecers must also prepare for the fact that electricity supply costs more. The cost of heritage electricity is 3 cents per kilowatt hour (¢/kWh). In its March 2022 strategic plan, Hydro-Québec anticipated an average cost of 11 cents for new supplies.
In March 2023, Hydro-Québec revealed the winners of calls for tenders made in 2021. The seven selected projects, which will produce 1,500 MW of wind energy, will have an average cost of 6.1 cents, without taking into account transportation and balancing.
The inflationary environment, rising interest rates, labor shortages and supply chain disruptions have also led to increased costs for renewable energy projects.
Despite these headwinds, “wind energy remains the least expensive source of green electricity,” replies Mr. Calzado.